More Home Cooking: A Writer Returns to the Kitchen, Laurie Colwin
I loved Colwin’s Home Cooking, and rereading an essay of hers (the titular one in Alone in the Kitchen with an Eggplant) prompted me to pick up her second collection of food essays. She muses on cooking for kids, catering on the cheap, and the difficulties of finding good bread, with a few recipes sprinkled throughout. Light and fun.
Anne of Windy Poplars, L.M. Montgomery
“Only the true fans can quote Anne lines from Windy Poplars,” Serenity told me once. This fourth book in the series is definitely underrated. I love it – from Anne’s short-lived feud with the Pringles to her musings on pens and silences, to the way she charms “the widows,” Katherine Brooke, Rebecca Dew and the rest of Summerside. Perfect for blustery autumn days (how I envy Anne her tower room!).
Something Borrowed, Emily Giffin
I’m usually a snob about chick lit, but my sister loves Emily Giffin and convinced me to give her a try. Giffin’s debut is both fluffy and compelling, though it made me feel a bit icky because it is about several people who cheat on each other ALL the time. I did like the narrator, Rachel (the consummate good girl), and appreciated Giffin’s musings on the complexities of female friendship. Good weekend reading.
Something Blue, Emily Giffin
After her best friend Rachel (see above) steals her fiance, Darcy Rhone finds herself alone, pregnant (by a different man – again with the cheating!) and at her wits’ end. She moves to London to stay with an old friend, and gradually realizes she needs to make some changes in her life. I didn’t believe Darcy could change, but she does so admirably (though a bit quickly). Fluffy and fun.
Somewhere in France, Jennifer Robson
Lady Elizabeth Neville-Ashford wants to make a difference in the world, but she’s constrained by her place in British society. But when World War I breaks out, she learns to drive, defies her parents, and joins the ranks of WAAC drivers, eventually getting posted to France where her sweetheart, a Scottish surgeon, is working at a field hospital. A compelling war tale (with some gory medical details) and a moving love story, though the ending was quite abrupt. To review for Shelf Awareness (out Dec. 31).
Murder Must Advertise, Dorothy L. Sayers
Lord Peter Wimsey goes undercover at a London advertising agency to investigate the death of a copywriter. He uncovers a nest of blackmail, drug-smuggling, jealousy and other fun leisure pursuits. An entertaining mystery, with lots of witty advertising wordplay. (Though I couldn’t believe nobody guessed Lord Peter’s true identity.) So much fun.
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What are you reading?
I’ve never read any Peter Wimsey book but I keep getting recommended them on Goodreads so maybe I will! I’m just about to finish All Roads Lead to Austen. It’s a great book, true story, about an English lit professor who’s touring South America to see how Austen translates there.
I loved All Roads Lead to Austen! I read it a year or so ago.
I’m in awe. How on earth do you have time to read so much?
I had a sick day this week. That helped!🙂 And I always spend my commute (40 minutes each way) reading.
Giffins books are fluffy and fun- though the cheating storyline in Something Borrowed did make me pause. That seems to be a more prevalent plot these days in books and movies. I want to tell authors and screenwriters to let their characters realize they’re dating the wrong person, break up, and then meet/start dating the right person. In real life, it’s usually bad odds to start a relationship via cheating!
Your post reminds me that I need to get back to reading the Anne books. I have not read anymore of the second one since I got back from Toronto.
I enjoy your reading recaps so much . . . although I’m always envious of how much you can get read in one week! I’m lucky if I read that much in a month!
I actually just put Home Cooking on hold after reading your thoughts on the second one. I love a good food book, and a collection of essays sounds delightful!
I adore Anne, and I’m sad that Anne of Windy Poplars gets overlooked by so many. It’s such a good one!
I love that you are reading Anne of Green Gables. It is a bit of a tradition for CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corp) to air the mini-series of Anne of Green Gables every Christmas. I don’t know if it’s on NetFlix, but it worth the watch. And Gilbert is rather dreamy.